Almost as soon as you decide to visit, even if you haven't actually booked it, the anticipation and excitement begins to mount. If you are one of the lucky ones and have access to this incredible message board,you may feel as though you are reading clips and quotes from some outrageously trumped up magazine story. The things that people are writing couldn't possibly be all that is cracked up to be. Certainly these people must be exaggerating. How could all the things they are writing about be true? After all, you've been on some really great vacations yourself. None of them even came close to the descriptions that are being talked about here. What's behind these candid observations? Are they being solicited for some financial rewards? Do they get a special rate if they sort of fluff up their reviews? I mean, it's just not possible that what everyone is raving about is available to all the guests, all the time and in one place. How could that be true? Well, obviously you have never been to a Couples resort. If you had, then you would realize in an instant that everything these people are saying is yours for the taking. Not just for "special" guests. There must be some outrageously over priced fee for some special package deal. Well trust me friend. Every word is true. Everyone can and will have the same amount of fun and enjoyment. From the moment they arrive at any of the four uniquely different resorts, vacation time will never be the same again. You are not in the twilight zone. You are at Jamaica's foremost resorts. Couples.

It may not sound like much at first glance. It's such a simple name for such a fun filled satisfying experience that you keep reading and hearing about. What's really behind all this chatter? And how could four totally different resorts that come under the name of Couples offer such a dramatic, dynamic and diverse vacation for every single couple that goes there? The answer is very simple really. It's Couples.

Just hearing the word "Couples" can make you tingle with excitement. Couples. An idea born out of one man that had a vision. To offer every guest an experience unlike any other. To treat everyone more like family than just another paying couple. Make their every moment relaxed and fulfilling so that when the visit is over, they can't wait to get back. They become known as "repeaters". After all, why would someone continue to pay good money to keep going back to the same place as often as they do? Sure the first time may have been wonderful, but it still doesn't make sense that time after time, year after year, people would continue to reserve space to do the same thing they did the last time. And the time before that. Don't they get bored? Doesn't it get stale after a while? The short answer is no, it doesn't. In fact if anything, it just keeps getting better. Regardless of which of the four sisters you find to be your favorite lady, you will be greeted by staff that will remember you. "Welcome home" they say. A hug and warm embrace, huge smiles on their faces and love in their hearts. Many returning folks have found what they describe as "nirvana". This is due largely to how you are treated and cared for by each and every staff person. Don't let the word "staff" fool you. These hard working, genuinely kind and caring men and women will make you feel as though you have "arrived". You have entered a place that doesn't show up on any travel brochure. It's almost as though you have stepped through some sort of worm hole. Something straight of of T.V. mini series. But believe me, this is not your average Caribbean place in the sun. Far from it. In fact just about every guest doesn't think of this as just a vacation, it's more like an experience. And you don't have to be a repeater to feel this way. More and more "newbies" as we call the first timers, find their introduction to such a unique seven or ten or however many days they have to spend there, to be far beyond their wildest imagination. The quickly realize, this is really special. This is Couples.

There are four properties that come under the name of Couples. And at each one, you are pampered, cared for, and what ever you may want or need during your stay will quickly be provided. And they do this without looking for any financial reward. In fact, there is a policy that is strictly enforced that does not allow for tipping. No person has to slip an extra dime to anyone in order to get all that is available. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, is given the same unequaled service. It makes do difference what your financial status is. Nor do they care where you came from or your political affiliations may be. The only thing that matters to every single person that is employed by this outstanding mini empire is that your stay be made unforgettable. Almost as though you were the only two people that they had to care for. Everyone receives the same treatment. That's just one of the things that have people referring to this magic time and place as a true melting pot of humanity. The epitome of equality. There are no barriers. This is Couples.

When each of us go about our daily lives back in what I call "the real world", every day is filled with demands and deadlines and bottom lines that can't help but cause us stress. There are obligations to be met. Quotas to be filled. Time is money and usually we can't afford to squander any of it. We have fellow co-workers and bosses and precious little time to sit and gab or take long lunch hours. In fact, for most of us, we only get a half an hour to gobble up our food and fill our stomachs. We also may have to rush around to get to the bank and the cleaners and drive your kid somewhere. Every minute is accounted for. Every day is held up to some scrutiny by someone. Just thinking about it makes me take a deep breath and hope that I can get it all done in the measly time that is allotted.

Well at Couples, there is no quota. No limited space to accomplish this or that. Every day is chocked full of unlimited hours that somehow fit into the conventional twenty-four hour day. If you can't make the 7:30 am start for breakfast, it's okay. There will still be plenty of hot fresh edibles if you start your day at 10:00 am instead. Fresh juice, coffee, breakfast fools and a smile on the wait staff that is not just left over from earlier in the day.

Within a matter of just a few moments of your arrival, you quickly discover that the pace is relaxed. Time is not your enemy. You have as much of the clock as you want with little or no regard for just about anything. You and your loved one are able to really and honestly relax. To have time to stare into each others eyes and perhaps for the first time in a long while, truly see and and hear what each other have to say. As you go about whatever activities may catch your fancy, you begin to notice that just about everyone is smiling. Both the guests and the staff. Everyone says 'hello' as you pass them. Something that rarely ever happens "back home". You feel like a kid at camp. Where fun and enjoyment are the only things that matter. You may find yourself standing on your balcony, gazing out at the magnificent blue green ocean. Both of you sigh in unison. There is contentment and peace where ever you look. And unbridled beauty surrounds you every step. Form the pristine white building gleaming in the sun, to palm trees, warm sand and the gently flow of the ocean. You have time to notice the little things. Like a tiny gecko scampering around in the almond tree or along the quiet walkways. You may marvel at the man-o-war birds circling overhead. Catching the warm updrafts so that they can glide around in circles while they seek out a morsel to eat. The snowy white egrets that nest along the shoreline in the mango trees. Each day, soon after the sun appears in the bright blue sky, they leave their roost and head for the grassy inland areas to forage for insects and frogs. They have a symbiotic relationship with the horses, cows and goats that are grazing. As the animals move about, they scare up tasty morsels for the long legged visitors. Then, as the sun begins its slow decent in to a distant horizon, the sky is filled with satisfied workers as they return to their high rise apartments in the branches. You may notice that some of them fly high above waters edge, then swoop down to claim their nightly resting spot. Still others make their approach just inches above the gently rolling waves and as they approach the greenery, they jockey for position on the same branches they had when they left. Creatures of habit. There is a rhythm to life that is unequaled. And you are part of it.

After a day spent in the tropical splendor of this tiny island, swimming, playing, resting or partaking in games the dwindling hours slowly give way to another starry night with gentle soothing breezes. The sounds of tiny tree frogs can be heard all around you, but you hardly ever get to actually see these Caribbean amphibians. Nature brings on a great orchestra of sounds and aromas that will have you marveling at it all. There is a peacefulness that you have seldom felt before. You are in a paradise. And with loving partner, your spirits soar to never before achieved or imagined heights.

For more than fifty years this scrumptious environment has played host to countless numbers of lovers. All ages, all types, from all over the globe. You may have to pinch yourself to make sure this is not a dream. For if it were, you would probably choose to not be disturbed from your slumber. Until now, a setting such as this has only existed in fairy tales. But this is surly not a dream. You are there and you are very much a part of the storybook tale.

We spend countless hours looking at the photos and reading the reviews of those that went before. And as each long day slowly fades in to another tropical evening, you may find yourself looking for more. Just one more day. Just one more sultry night with the moon and the stars overhead.

Unfortunately, like most things in life, the reality of living is that there is only a finite amount of time for each and every day. And sadly, so very sadly, the dreaded moment of separation arrives for each of us. The bags get packed and stand outside our door. Like silent sentries waiting to take you back from whence you came.You are quiet as you board the bus that must inevitably whisk us away to another place and time. You get one more handshake. One more hug. Your eyes dart about the lobby to have one last look. One more lasting memory. Tears roll down your cheeks without shame. Sighs of overwhelming pleasure fill the air and your brain. Will you ever be back? Will all the excitement and beauty and friendship still be there when and if you return. There is hardly a doubt in anyone's mind. The land of warm waters, sun filled days and inviting nights will be there always. Waiting for your return. And return you will. You must. And once again the glorious cycle of beautiful days and enchanting nights will be waiting for you. Just the way you remember it. What would life be like without it? That is a thought that is just to hard to comprehend. Life without Couples is just not possible. Once you go, you will truly and absolutely know.

June 14th, 2010, 09:22 PM

Jimnmariann

Thanks Richie- You have us all pumped up and ready to go back for our sixth trip in a few weeks. We know, we definitely know. We are one of the many couples, like you, who have been lucky enough and blessed to have found this paradise on earth.